MarloElaine » Hack

How to: Give your Dyson Vacuum a “Haircut”

Elaine — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 04:29:56 +0000

If anyone in your family (or even your pet) has long hair, you’ve probably had trouble with your vacuum cleaner getting weaker or losing suction. It’s even happened to our powerful Dyson, which claims right on the vacuum that it’s “The first vacuum cleaner that doesn’t lose suction.” We have the Dyson DC07 Bagless Vacuum and we love it. Every few months, though, we have to give it a “haircut.”

Since I have had very long hair for most of my life, I have done this several times. This method works with other types of upright vacuums as well, both baggless and bagged. I have found the Dyson to be the easiest to clean.

I never heard of anyone else who has ever given their vacuum a “haircut,” so I was very surprised to see it mentioned in the Dyson instruction manual. The official directions are buried on page 7 of the 14 page instruction manual, under the heading “Where to Look for Blockages.”

Here’s how I do it:

First gather your supplies. You will need a coin or large screwdriver, scissors, a garbage can, and if you like, a face mask and/or latex gloves.
Make sure your Dyson vacuum is off and unplugged. Gently lay it down on the ground.
With the bottom of the vacuum facing you, you should see three colored “screws.” Turn these colored fasteners with a coin or a large screwdriver. You should hear a “click” when it is turned all the way.
You may want to put on a face mask for the next part, especially if you have any respiratory problems. The faceplate should lift off easily, releasing a lot of dust. You should be able to view the brushbar, probably entwined with a lot of hair, thread, etc. This is what causes the loss of suction.
With a pair of scissors, carefully cut through the hair and thread, making sure to avoid the bristles of the brush. I usually cut along the middle of one side, then rotate the brushbar and cut along the middle of the other side.
All of the long hairs and threads can now be easily removed with your fingers. Wear a pair of latex gloves, if desired.
When all the obstructions are removed, put the faceplate back on and turn the three “screws.”
Stand your vacuum upright, plug it in, and test it by vacuuming all the stray hair and dust that just got dislodged. You should see a marked improvement immediately.

Hopefully this will save someone the hassle of hauling their vacuum cleaner into a repair shop or even buying a new vacuum all together. Please let me know in the comments section if it works for you.

How to: Keep Your Bottled Water Cold

Elaine — Thu, 31 May 2007 06:29:23 +0000

Drinking water is one of the best things you can do for your body. Water is a natural appetite suppressant, has zero calories, prevents dehydration, and is great for the skin, kidneys, liver and digestive system. It is very important for everyone, especially pregnant and nursing women, to drink plenty of water.

I always try to bring a bottle of water with me wherever I go. I noticed that I often drank only half of the water in my bottle, stopping once the water was no longer cold. My solution is to keep several half full water bottles in my freezer. When I am ready for a drink, I just top off the frozen bottle with more water. The ice keeps the water nice and cold, then melts to make more! Ice cold, spill proof, & portable!

Sometimes I put the half ice/half water bottles in my cooler or lunch box instead of an ice pack. For long trips, I freeze an almost full bottle. Don’t freeze a full bottle… the plastic might crack when the ice expands as it freezes!

This also works great with sports drinks or juice in plastic bottles. Not so good with carbonated drinks. Haven’t tried it with milk… yet.

Easy Child Security Hack

Elaine — Sun, 08 Apr 2007 04:56:01 +0000

We took the kids to the Chicago Children’s Museum at Navy Pier today. Since it’s Easter weekend and Spring Break for some schools, we knew it would be fairly crowded. We were concerned about accidental separation from one or both of the kids. As a precaution, we wrote our cell phone numbers on pieces of paper and placed them in each child’s pocket. However, when we received our admission wristbands, it made so much more sense to just write the phone numbers directly onto the wristband! I just happen to carry a Fine Point Sharpie in my purse, so that made it even easier!

Here’s a picture of Sammy with his security wristband:

I’ve read an article on ParentHacks that some parents just write their personal info directly on the child with permanent marker. While the Sharpie does claim to be nontoxic, I’d prefer not to brand my son and daughter like that. Besides, we’re taking lots of pictures on Easter tomorrow.

Sammy has memorized our home phone number, but that doesn’t really help when no one is home. We’re planning on teaching him our cell phone numbers, but until then, I’m going to look into purchasing disposable wristbands. We’re going to need them for upcoming events with big crowds, such as Taste of Chicago, Ribfest, concerts at Ravinia, etc.

Review: Swiffer Carpet Flick

Elaine — Wed, 28 Feb 2007 06:49:40 +0000

My son Sammy just loves to watch me vacuum. He pretends that many of his toys are vacuums (toy weed whacker, golf clubs, etc.). As soon as we saw the television commercial for the Swiffer Carpet Flick, we knew we had to get it for him.

To Sammy’s delight, the handle comes in several pieces, allowing us to customize it to Sammy’s height. Now he can pretend to vacuum just like Mommy, and actually clean the carpet too!

The Swiffer does a pretty good job of cleaning up Cheerios his little sister may have thrown on the floor. It’s great for that quick daily cleanup when you don’t want to lug out that heavy vacuum.

If you have a toddler at home who likes to help out with the household work, this is the toy to get them. Unlike this vacuum toy, the Swiffer actually picks up dirt and does not require any batteries.

Safety Information: Please be sure to remind your kids not to touch the sticky part of the Swiffer. As the warning on the box says, it’s not meant for ingestion – i.e., don’t let them eat it!

New Use For That Baby Monitor

Elaine — Mon, 12 Feb 2007 23:26:14 +0000

If you have a baby monitor, put the base in the laundry room so that no matter where you (and the receiver) are in the house, you can hear when the washer or dryer is finished!

Our laundry room is on the second floor. Without the baby monitor, I couldn’t hear the buzzer when I was working on my computer in the basement. Hours would go by before I remembered the damp laundry in the washer waiting to be dried.

If Sammy hears the end of cycle signal through the monitor, he tells me, “Mommy, your laundry is beeping!”

So go ahead and put that old baby monitor to good use!